Art+Cause

We’re excitedly awaiting Friday, December 5th for Art+Cause at Convergence in the Plaza District.  Please come by and check it out!  Nathan Gunn will be creating an original art piece inspired by Spero:Voice and we will be inviting people to volunteer with our organization.  We’d love to see your smiling faces there!

Christmas in November

It felt like Christmas tonight!  All of us volunteers were grinning from ear to ear–being there was seriously one of the greatest things we could have asked for.  Being dramatic, am I?  I really don’t think so!  

Tonight, we held our Thanksgiving dinner for all of the refugees we’ve been having Conversational English sessions with.  Because of the fancy cooking of all of our great volunteers, we were able to feed over 50 students from places like Burma, The Congo, Saudia Arabia, Iraq, and Afghanistan.  It was our own little multicultural fair!  The kids had lots of fun coloring and playing together and the adults and kids alike were mesmerized by the Arabic music jam session that occurred.  It was a huge success!  

Thanks to all the volunteers and especially to Paul and Jennifer Colley for offering their house for the event.  This year, we’re thankful for our new found friends from all over the world!

Girls (and boy) Just Wanna Have Fun!

Language barrier=plan loosely!  In such a short time of Spero:Voice existing, that’s a lesson we’ve already learned a time or two!  And, so it was with our All-Girls Sleepover.  First, there was a good amount of flu-like illness going around, so we didn’t get to have some of the girls we’d hoped for.  But, we did have two of the sweetest young ladies you’ll ever meet join us–along with their little brother!  At first we couldn’t tell if he was just seeing them off, or if he was coming with us.  But, when he followed us to the car, we realized that our all-girl night needed to be tweaked just a bit to be a little more manly!  And, it appeared, that parents might be thinking we were coming back at 9:30p.m. instead of 9:30a.m. the next day.  With no way to assure ourselves that they understood we really would bring their kids back the next day, we opted to take them home that night.  So, it turned into an all-around party night.  Which, really, is just as great as a slumber party for the girls!

With a smaller crowd, we got to make some more personalized plans.  Which was great, because the kids that did get to come showed up with sandals and no coats.  It was COLD Friday night.  So, the volunteers decided to pool together and take the kids on a trip to Ross for coats and close-toed shoes.  Such a little sacrifice on our part made such a HUGE difference for them.  We pray they feel loved and cared for and protected by these gifts and that the Lord was making Himself obvious to their hearts through the generosity of those giving financially and emotionally that night.

Speaking of–our volunteers are already shaping up to be a pretty amazing group of people.  Three gals traveled down from OBU and were the perfect entertainment as they openly danced in the middle of shopping!  Their joy reflected Jesus to the girls, I am sure!  And, all the other volunteers gave so generously with such little hesitation.  Spero:Voice is truly blessed to have people willing to give.  We thank everyone involved on behalf of those you served!

Girls Only!

A week from tonight, there will be an abundance of nail polish and lotion that smells like various fruits filling up our girlie night!  Some of us lady volunteers are inviting some of the teenage girls from the refugee group to hang out with us for the night.  I’m really praying for some great relationships to begin there.  I mean, a relationship is destined for greatness if it starts over a Freddie Prince Jr. movie, right?…well, maybe I need to ask someone with some teenagers which movies are a little more up to date.

Thanks to the Super 8!

The Super 8 Motel in Norman contacted Catholic Charities and offered the refugee relocation department over 40 mattresses in great condition!!  So, Brad rented a truck today and loaded it up with mattresses. What a huge blessing to those people coming here from refugee camps who have slept on the floor for years and years.  Just think about how much we long for our own bed when we’ve been traveling for a long time…can you picture laying down in your very own bed after 10 years?!?!?  Thank you Super 8 Motel!

Giving Thanks Isn’t Just for the 27th!

Tuesday night, I was watching election results with a group of refugees recently leaving Burma.  Then I went to the apartment of a family from The Congo.  And, at both places I was keenly aware that we, as Americans, have some rights we most assuredly take for granted.  I speak mostly for myself, here, when I say I’m sad for us–sad that we don’t realize what we have.  Unlike the people in many areas around the world, we are able to speak openly FOR one candidate, and then not fear for our very lives when that candidate doesn’t make it to power.  We are able to go to the polls, place a vote, and walk out without dodging bullets from the side we voted against, shooting at us because we disagree with them.  If we are unhappy about the results, we are able to go to countless amounts of town, city, and state meetings, doing our part to make small changes that add up to a big one.

I’m not naive enough to think America is perfect or that there aren’t people stuck in a system that doesn’t do them any favors.  But, I am just naive enough to think that Americans could change their own country AND the world if we would appreciate our rights and act on them with the respect they deserve.  

It’s a good time to be grateful, not just because our candidate won.  It’s a good time to be grateful, even if our candidate lost.  And, it’s a really good time to pray for those people who don’t have the rights we do.

Cowboys, Princesses, and a Mouse or Two!

Thanks to Crown Heights Baptists Church who provided us a fantastic event to let some children experience last Friday.  Their Fall Festival was full of games, events, “hay rides,” and lots and lots of prizes!  Some of the kids participating have been in America for a while, so they were perhaps more prepared for what was in store.  But, a particular family of 6 came with us–a family who arrived in America from Burma 14 days before!  They were, I’m sure, a bit overwhelmed by the whirlwind of activity.  Here’s a cowboy hat, here’s a bandana, let us draw a mustache on your face, now try to throw the ball into the hole–if you can, candy for you!  Who knows how much they understood, but we all knew what a great time they had.  It was easy to tell by the smiles.  Oh, and the serious laughs on the moonbounce.